Why 'white' stars like Beyoncé are betraying black women

WATCHING BEYONCE’S triumphant return to the UK stage at this year’s Glastonbury Festival and noticing just how she had changed from her Destiny’s Child era, I couldn’t help but ask myself the question, ‘is the world of the black celebrity and white celebrity colliding?’

Everything about the way she looks has changed. The hair is blonder, the skin lighter and the nose more Aquiline than ever.

Now this is not limited to the Ms. B alone. Just a quick flick through the tabloids and lifestyle magazines which now carry pictures and stories of American black celebrities like Rihanna, Nicki Manaj, Kelly Rowland, Jennifer Hudson etc will show you they are all beginning to morph into the same plastic fantastic as their white counterparts.

The now almost daily bombardment of their interchangeable looks and styles makes you wonder whether more and more are opting to swap their natural God-made looks for the man-made.

In these days where nothing remains hidden, denial of surgical enhancement is as futile as photographic evidence of broader noses, less than perky breasts, darker skins and Kunta Kinte hairlines remain.

I guess we all know that these days in an industry where these women reign supreme, a less than perfect “look” would not be welcomed.

The problem is that for the average Shayquan and Sheniqua, the most successful celebrities symbolize both perfection and fantasy. For the young and fabulous crowd, and for those who really should know better, the world of 21st century celebrity is viewed as though it is a tangible reality.

On a sensible day we know that what we are looking at is a product of armies of stylists, make up artists, air brushers and clever lighting technicians.

But on a not such a good day we forget and head down to the shops along Billericay High Street hunting out Beyonce type bargains. The thing we have forgotten is that somewhere along the way these mega rich celebrities have placed their natural beauty onto a sacrificial altar. And since most of them have similar features they somehow have redefined beauty.

How life has changed! Back in the day, the most we could mimic was the harmless Afro – the bigger the better.

Today it is a lot more sinister as people get into debt, prison, and in the worst case scenario die, chasing the impossible dream of bigger boobs and bigger butts. How impossibly ridiculous is that? Especially when you hear these same women say things like ‘women run the world’, ‘be true to yourself’ and ‘you are beautiful no matter what you look like.’ Yeah, right!